News

Monthly apprenticeships update: April starts up 3% on last year but May stays static

Apprenticeship starts for the period August 2018 to May 2019 are up 7 per cent on the previous year,…

Billy Camden
Billy Camden
News

Gavin Williamson becomes new education secretary

Gavin Williamson has been appointed the new education secretary, replacing Damian Hinds who was sacked earlier this evening. A…

Fraser Whieldon
Fraser Whieldon
News

DfE officially reopens academisation option for sixth-form colleges

The government has confirmed it will continue to allow sixth-form colleges to academise, two months after FE Week revealed…

Billy Camden
Billy Camden
News

Cabinet reshuffle: Education secretary Damian Hinds out

Damian Hinds has lost his job as education secretary, following skills minister Anne Milton out the door, as new…

Billy Camden
Billy Camden
News

Government turns to European Union funding to support T-levels

The government is looking to the European Social Fund to help tackle the barriers that rural areas face with…

Billy Camden
Billy Camden
News

Theresa May uses last PMQs to plead with Boris Johnson to invest more in FE

Outgoing prime minister Theresa May used her last speech at the dispatch box to plead with her successor to…

Billy Camden
Billy Camden


News

The 11 things we learned from the DfE’s and ESFA’s 2018-19 accounts

Both the Department for Education and Education and Skills Funding Agency have today published their annual accounts for 2018-19,…

Billy Camden
Billy Camden
News

Skills minister Anne Milton resigns

Apprenticeships and skills minister Anne Milton has resigned from government. She announced the move on Twitter ahead of the…

Billy Camden
Billy Camden
News

WorldSkills 2019: Meet Team UK

With the WorldSkills 2019 competition only a month away, we introduce the 37 members of Team UK that’ll be…

Fraser Whieldon
Fraser Whieldon
News

Victory for Grenfell campaigners as government pledges £32.3m to buy back college campus

The government has pledged up to £32.3 million to help buy back a college campus that serves the community…

Billy Camden
Billy Camden
News

DfE confirms popular BTECs amongst qualifications facing funding axe

More than 160 “duplicate qualifications” at level 3 and below will have their funding removed from August 2020 –…

Simon Kay
Simon Kay
News

Ofsted watch: Unimpressive week for new private providers

Five early monitoring reports for independent providers returned ‘insufficient’ ratings this week, with Ofsted finding some have not recruited…

Billy Camden
Billy Camden

Must read

Colleges, Long read

Alun Francis, chair of the Social Mobility Commission

Deprived areas need vision – not victimhood – to level up, and Social Mobility Commission chair Alun Francis is…

Jessica Hill
Jessica Hill
Long read, Prison education

The prison that’s offering hope for a new life upon release

‘We’re saving people’s lives as well as turning them around’

Jessica Hill
Jessica Hill
Apprenticeships, Politics

Phillipson to exempt young people from level 7 apprenticeships funding axe

Education secretary makes ‘important concession’ amid backlash from other government departments

Billy Camden
Billy Camden
Colleges, FE Commissioner

Weston chair felt powerless over £2.5m payments to former principal

Ex-Weston college chair gives tell-all interview following FE Commissioner probe

Anviksha Patel
Anviksha Patel
Colleges

Weston College governance failure allowed ‘concealment’ of £2.5m payments to former principal

Paul Phillips was paid £1.8m in 2023, including a ‘significant’ six-figure retention payment which his COO son ‘resisted’ paying…

Anviksha Patel
Anviksha Patel
T Levels

NAO reveals enormity of T Level take-up failure

Forecasts missed by 75% and secret DfE estimates show staff and employer shortages could limit places to 48,000 students

Anviksha Patel
Anviksha Patel